This page is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

News and updates for administrators from the past month (June 2017).

Administrator changes

Happyme22 • Dragons flight

Zad68

Guideline and policy news

• The RFC discussion regarding WP:OUTING and WMF essay about paid editing and outing (see more at the ArbCom noticeboard archives) is now archived. Milieus #3 and #4 received support; so did concrete proposal #1.

Technical news

• Fuzzy search will soon be added to Special:Undelete, allowing administrators to search for deleted page titles with results similar to the search query. You can test this by adding ?fuzzy=1 to the URL, as with Special:Undelete?fuzzy=1. Currently the search only finds pages that exactly match the search term.
• A new bot will automatically revision delete unused file versions from files in Category:Non-free files with orphaned versions more than 7 days old.

Miscellaneous

• A newly revamped database report can help identify users who may be eligible to be autopatrolled.
• A potentially compromised account from 2001–2002 attempted to request resysop. Please practice appropriate account security by using a unique password for Wikipedia, and consider enabling two-factor authentication. Currently around 17% of admins have enabled 2FA, up from 16% in February 2017.
• Did you know: On 29 June 2017, there were 1,261 administrators on the English Wikipedia – the exact number of administrators as there were ten years ago on 29 June 2007. Since that time, the English Wikipedia has grown from 1.85 million articles to over 5.43 million.

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Thanks for supporting my run for administrator. I am honored and grateful. ) Cullen328 Let's discuss it 20:35, 23 July 2017 (UTC)

Hello Deor, I was just asking,

Was it really necessary to delete the page that lists videos games that became the last on home consoles. I personally think its ridiculous because it's really interesting to know what were the last games released on home consoles. I'm not being rude, I'm just asking why did you delete it? I'm trying to recreate the page but I want to ask you permission if it's okay since you performed the actions. Is it okay? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mrfluffypuff13 ( talk • contribs) 09:29, 30 July 2017 (UTC)

@ Mrfluffypuff13: I deleted that list in accordance with the consensus in Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/List of last games released on video game consoles, a discussion in which absolutely no one advocated keeping it. You can try to recreate it if you want, but unless you can solve the absence-of-sourcing problem, it's likely to be nominated for deletion again, I think. Deor ( talk) 09:39, 30 July 2017 (UTC)

@ Deor: Why is it nominated to be deleted? Why do people want it gone? I think that's pretty cruel of them. Because it's really interesting to see what games on consoles became the last. Unless they think it was mostly sports games. If that's reason, then that's just ridiculous.

@ Mrfluffypuff13: Well, if you look at that Articles for Deletion discussion, you'll see the reasoning of the nominator and the commenters. Most people didn't see how the entries in such a list could be verified in reliable sources, and without verification a Wikipedia article can't exist. Deor ( talk) 01:44, 1 August 2017 (UTC)

News and updates for administrators from the past month (July 2017).

Administrator changes

Anarchyte • GeneralizationsAreBad • Cullen328 ^{( first RfA to reach WP:300)}

Cprompt • Rockpocket • Rambo's Revenge • Animum • TexasAndroid • Chuck SMITH • MikeLynch • Crazytales • Ad Orientem

Guideline and policy news

• Following a series of discussions around new pages patrol, the WMF is helping implement a controlled autoconfirmed article creation trial as a research experiment, similar to the one proposed in 2011. You can learn more about the research plan at meta:Research:Autoconfirmed article creation trial. The exact start date of the experiment has yet to be determined.
• A new speedy deletion criterion, regarding articles created as a result undisclosed paid editing, is currently being discussed ( permalink).
• An RfC ( permalink) is currently open that proposes expanding WP:G13 to include all drafts, even if they weren't submitted through Articles for Creation.

Technical news

• LoginNotify should soon be deployed to the English Wikipedia. This will notify users when there are suspicious login attempts on their account.
• The new version of XTools is nearing an official release. This suite of tools includes administrator statistics, an improved edit counter, among other tools that may benefit administrators. You can report issues on Phabricator and provide general feedback at mw:Talk:XTools.

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http://www.thelancasternews.com/content/voters-ok-town-van-wyck I notice you took away the changes that were made, why? All the information is being processed!

Tetaylor (
talk) 17:50, 16 August 2017 (UTC)

@ Tetaylor: According to that news article, the process of incorporation is not complete: "... then we’ve got to send the results down to the secretary of state’s office. Then he’ll issue a certificate of incorporation." In addition, the infobox you added contained info about Lancaster, not Van Wyck, and the historical-population table was malformatted. You also included a bunch of refs to the front pages of various Web sites, rather than to particular pages giving specific information about the place (there was a Van Wyck CCD for census purposes, but it covered an area considerably larger than that of the not-yet-incorporated town). When reliably sourced information with good refs can be added, you're welcome to do so; the changes made today were, however, too sloppy and incorrect to remain. Deor ( talk) 18:06, 16 August 2017 (UTC)

Well that's understandable a little but I was using Lancaster's version as a timeline. I was doing research but had you given me time to complete the process you would have known that. That would be the reason everything looked "sloppy" to you! Tetaylor ( talk) 18:16, 16 August 2017 (UTC)

You participated at this RfC; the proposal has changed a bit. Just providing you notice of that. Jytdog ( talk) 17:32, 25 August 2017 (UTC)

News and updates for administrators from the past month (August 2017).

Administrator changes

Nakon • Scott

Sverdrup • Thespian • Elockid • James086 • Ffirehorse • Celestianpower • Boing! said Zebedee

Guideline and policy news

• ACTRIAL, a research experiment that restricts article creation to autoconfirmed users, will begin on September 7. It will run for six months. You can learn more about the research specifics at meta:Research:Autoconfirmed article creation trial, while Wikipedia talk:Autoconfirmed article creation trial is probably the best venue for general discussion.
• Following an RfC, WP:G13 speedy deletion criterion now applies to any page in the draftspace that has not been edited in six months. There is a bot-generated report, updated daily, to help identify potentially qualifying drafts that have not been submitted through articles for creation.

Technical news

• You will now get a notification when someone tries to log in to your account and fails. If they try from a device that has logged into your account before, you will be notified after five failed attempts. You can also set in your preferences to get an email when someone logs in to your account from a new device or IP address, which may be encouraged for admins and accounts with sensitive permissions.
• Syntax highlighting is now available as a beta feature ( more info). This may assist administrators and template editors when dealing with intricate syntax of high-risk templates and system messages.
• In your notification preferences, you can now block specific users from pinging you. This functionality will soon be available for Special:EmailUser as well.

Arbitration

• Applications for CheckUser and Oversight are being accepted by the Arbitration Committee until September 12. Community discussion of the candidates will begin on September 18.

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I just rand a Plagiarism check on the Mont Rose College of Management and Sciences. With the re-added additions of user:MRC123456 we are showing a 73% match with the MRCMS websites. I have tried to clean up the article only to have my edits reverted by said user. Can you please take a look? VViking _{Talk Edits} 16:25, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

@ Viewmont Viking: I've cut back the article again. If you notice them adding copyvio again and I'm not around, remember that reverting copyright violations is exempt from the three-revert rule. I'll drop a warning on MRC123456's talk page and ask at WP:SPI for a checkuser to investigate this matter, since it's likely that MRC123456 is the same person as WilliamJoshua, whom I blocked a couple of days ago for persistently making much the same sorts of edits, as well as the IP 217.34.200.241. Thanks for keeping an eye on the article. Deor ( talk) 17:51, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

Note: I see that Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/WilliamJoshua has already been created by another editor. Deor ( talk) 17:59, 14 September 2017 (UTC)

All the picture are own by Mont Rose College and they gave the permission to upload the picture the reference is also done for the pictures. I can show many other wiki pages where they have their building, monuments and other pictures.. — Preceding unsigned comment added by MRC123456 ( talk • contribs) 09:24, 15 September 2017 (UTC)

Hi, the map that is currently on the Balochistan article has a fake map that looks like the Baloch settlement, but in reality this is a fake map. In this map, even the city of Quetta, which is the capital of the Balochistan province of Pakistan, is also in Balochistan Please do not paint this map and leave the map I left behind Sultanselim baloch ( talk) 05:45, 23 September 2017 (UTC)

News and updates for administrators from the past month (September 2017).

Administrator changes

Boing! said Zebedee • Ansh666 • Ad Orientem

Tonywalton • AmiDaniel • Silence • BanyanTree • Magioladitis • Vanamonde93 • Mr.Z-man • Jdavidb • Jakec • Ram-Man • Yelyos • Kurt Shaped Box

Guideline and policy news

• Following a successful proposal to create it, a new user right called " edit filter helper" is now assignable and revocable by administrators. The right allows non-administrators to view the details of private edit filters, but not to edit them.
• Following a discussion about mass-application of ECP and how the need for logging and other details of an evolving consensus may have been missed by some administrators, a rough guide to extended confirmed protection has been written. This information page describes how the extended-confirmed aspects of the protection policy are currently being applied by administrators.

Technical news

• You can now search for IP ranges at Special:Contributions. Some log pages and Special:DeletedContributions are not yet supported. Wildcards (e.g. 192.168.0.*) are also not supported, but the popular contribsrange gadget will continue to work.

Arbitration

• Community consultation on the 2017 candidates for CheckUser and Oversight has concluded. The Arbitration Committee will appoint successful candidates by October 11.
• A request for comment is open regarding the structure, rules, and procedures of the December 2017 Arbitration Committee election, and how to resolve any issues not covered by existing rules.

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County courthouses in New Jersey is a new article, which includes many coords. (I choose to use double "small" since it fits better in the col/row set up. I believe most, if not all, to be correct. Problem is formatting. If you have time and interest, you help in cleaning it up would be greatly appreciated. Djflem ( talk) 17:18, 10 October 2017 (UTC)

@ Djflem: OK, I'll look it over when I get a chance. Deor ( talk) 17:53, 10 October 2017 (UTC)

Thanks for your help with cleaning up the article. 20:34, 12 October 2017 (UTC)

News and updates for administrators from the past month (October 2017).

Administrator changes

Longhair • Megalibrarygirl • TonyBallioni • Vanamonde93

Allen3 • Eluchil404 • Arthur Rubin • Bencherlite

Technical news

• The Wikimedia Foundation's Anti-Harassment Tools team is creating an "Interaction Timeline" tool that intends to assist administrators in resolving user conduct disputes. Feedback on the concept may be posted on the talk page.
• A new function is now available to edit filter managers that will make it easier to look for multiple strings containing spoofed text.

Arbitration

• Eligible editors will be invited to submit candidate statements for the 2017 Arbitration Committee Elections starting on November 12 until November 21. Voting will begin on November 27 and last until December 10.
• Following a request for comment, Ritchie333, Yunshui and Ymblanter will serve as the Electoral Commission for the 2017 ArbCom Elections.

Obituaries

• The Wikipedia community has recently learned that Allen3 (William Allen Peckham) passed away on December 30, 2016, the same day as JohnCD. Allen began editing in 2005 and became an administrator that same year.

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Hello, This page is currently under construction, and is not complete. As an editor who is experienced on Wikipedia, I respectfully ask that you remove the deletion nomination and provide me with some time to improve this page, as I placed a construction template at the top. I am very busy and do not have time to work on the page this evening, but feel the topic is deserving of a page and would like to have more time to finish it. I also ask that you relist the construction template that I added, as the page is still under construction. Thank you.-- AirportExpert ( talk) 00:00, 6 November 2017 (UTC)AirportExpert

@ AirportExpert: You can put the construction template back on the article; just don't remove the AfD template again. I doubt that any further work you can do on the page will establish the school's notability, but you're welcome to try. Deor ( talk) 03:35, 6 November 2017 (UTC)

News and updates for administrators from the past month (November 2017).

Administrator changes

Joe Roe

JzG

Ericorbit • Perceval • Thingg • Tristanb • Violetriga

Guideline and policy news

• Following a request for comment, a new section has been added to the username policy which disallows usernames containing emoji, emoticons or otherwise "decorative" usernames, and usernames that use any non-language symbols. Administrators should discuss issues related to these types of usernames before blocking.

Technical news

• Wikimedians are now invited to vote on the proposals in the 2017 Community Wishlist Survey on Meta Wiki until 10 December 2017. In particular, there is a section of the survey regarding new tools for administrators and for anti-harassment.
• A new function is available to edit filter managers which can be used to store matches from regular expressions.

Arbitration

• Voting in the 2017 Arbitration Committee elections is open until Sunday 23:59, 10 December 2017 (UTC). There are 12 candidates running for 8 vacant seats.

Miscellaneous

• Over the last few months, several users have reported backlogs that require administrator attention at WP:ANI, with the most common backlogs showing up on WP:SPI, WP:AIV and WP:RFPP. It is requested that all administrators take some time during this month to help clear backlogs wherever possible. It should be noted that AIV reports are not always valid; however, they still need to be cleared, which may include needing to remind users on what qualifies as vandalism.
• The Wikimedia Foundation Community health initiative is conducting a survey for English Wikipedia contributors on their experience and satisfaction level with Administrator’s Noticeboard/Incidents. This survey will be integral to gathering information about how this noticeboard works (i.e. which problems it deals with well and which problems it struggles with). If you would like to take this survey, please sign up on this page, and a link for the survey will be emailed to you via Special:EmailUser.

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User:Deor: Could you explain the reason you revert this edit Revision as of 15:54, 5 November 2017: https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Voltaire&diff=prev&oldid=808888067. What would have made this a better edit? I am continually reverted when I edit and it tends always happen around issues related to including women. I this a technical issue or a subjective concern? Please clarify. I am also a NYCWikimedia member. If this is a NPOV issue, it would be much more useful to leave info about the issue as an administrator. If we are trying to be inclusive of good faith edits, reverting paragraphs of work, should reveal a reason that justifies an edit by an administrator. Esp. when dealing with marginalized knowledge. Look forward to your response. sheridanford . sheridanford ( talk) 15:38, 3 December 2017 (UTC)

@ SheridanFord: My being an admin has nothing to do with the matter; as a plain editor, I judged the material you added to be redundant. Émilie du Châtelet's translation of Newton's Principia is already mentioned in the article (in the second paragraph after your addition). If you want to expand on or add additional references to what's there, I would have no objection; but introducing a repetition of material present elsewhere in the article seems unnecessary to me. (There's also no reason to wikilink her already linked name, and to include her dates of birth and death, which can be seen by merely clicking on the link, also seems pleonastic.) In general, I guess, I got the impression that you were forcing material into the article without having shown that you had paid sufficient attention to what was already there. Deor ( talk) 21:53, 3 December 2017 (UTC)

Thank you for clarifying. I rushed the job! sheridanford ( talk) 03:05, 7 December 2017 (UTC)

Thank you for updating Caquorobert coordinates. All my attempts to find accurate coordinates have failed, placing this island on the island of Herm, or slightly east (yours) or west of Herm. Some mapping services do not have Caquorobert, and the ones that do seem to be wrong. I tried to register with Geonames, but so far I have been unable to do so. Their coordinates are wrong, and I have been unable to tell them that. What do you suggest?-- Dthomsen8 ( talk) 16:50, 7 December 2017 (UTC)

@ Dthomsen8: I don't know what to say. I'm not sure why a search for "Caquorobert" in Google Maps leads to a location on Herm, but an error of half a mile or so in GeoNames is not unusual at all—in my experience, GeoNames is just not very accurate. I myself had to use OpenStreetMap to pin down the exact location of the islet; although that is a user-generated mapping service, it sometimes has more accurate locations for obscure places than the others. Deor ( talk) 02:58, 8 December 2017 (UTC)

Thank you for the information about Geonames. I think leaving Caquorobert without coordinates is reasonable.-- Dthomsen8 ( talk) 02:06, 9 December 2017 (UTC)

Re your revert, ok, I was unaware of that talk page discussion, so thanks for pointing that out. As my edit suggests, had I been aware of that discussion at the time I would have argued for the less strong "legendary" per for example the Encyclopædia Britannica. However I'm not motivated enough to try to reopen that discussion. Paul August ☎ 11:51, 10 December 2017 (UTC)

Hey, Deor. I'd like to wish you a wonderful First Edit Day on behalf of the Wikipedia Birthday Committee! Have a great day! Chris Troutman ( talk) 12:18, 14 December 2017 (UTC)